The Divorcee Is A Wicked Black Belly

Nian Zhen"s eyes seemed to burn. He couldn"t seem to take his eyes away. The boy looked exactly like him at that young age. Even the cowlick on his hair was the same, and the dimples that will disappear when he grew older was the same.

Nian Zhen stood rooted at the spot even as the world around him tilted to the other side. Gu Sheng was not looking at anyone but at him. Nian Zhen looked like a thirsty man who found water but was scared to bend down and drink for fear that it was all an illusion. The water was not there but the idea of it merely whetted his thirst, making him unable to think of anything else but how it would feel sliding down his parched throat.

"Prince," Gu Sheng"s voice was merely a whisper but it seemed to wake Nian Zhen up from his dream. He blinked and met Gu Sheng"s anxious eyes.

"Mom, where is this place? I think I"ve seen a deer. I want to go and explore," a young girl"s voice asked excitedly.

"Later, darling. You can go when its lighter later this morning. Are you okay? You didn"t hit your head or anything when we landed, did you?" An Ning asked tenderly, lightly checking the girl"s hair and face with her fingertips.

"How can she? Gran made the perfect landing. Gran, I want you to teach me how to drive," the boy cut in.

"You"re still too young," the elder man said smiling, affectionately ruffling his hair. "Give it a year or so then I"ll teach you."

"Where is this place, An Ning?" Ceres asked, walking forward, an anxious An Ma behind her. "We"re not lost are we?"

"And who are you?" the voice came from the woman who looked exactly like An Ning but older. She was tall and slim but had the perfect figure of a young and gorgeous Jane Fonda in that outer s.p.a.ce movie. Her long black hair was unbound, tied with a ribbon in the middle of the l.u.s.trous fall, which made her look like a young maiden about to go for a leisurely stroll. She was wearing a stunning dress of gold that followed each line and curve of her body like a glove, the long trim legs encased in long light yellow boots. She was not wearing any jewelry but there was a wide bronze bracelet on her left arm that snaked around her slim wrist and arm like a snarling cobra about to strike. Her eyes were very sharp and direct, missing nothing. And they were staring at Nian Zhen with an imperiousness that brooked no resistance.

Nian Zhen resisted the impulse to swallow. He was about to open his mouth and speak when An Ning walked to his side and took his arm, dragging him forward so that he was finally included in the circle of this vast activity of giggles and laughter, and cursing from An Ma when he stepped on a dead toad, and the warmth in An Ning"s eyes as she looked at him.

"He"s the king of Chengdi and we are his guests," An Ning said. "Grandmama, his highness, Nian Zhen."

The formal introduction of his name and status stopped all noise and activity from the group. They all looked at Nian Zhen standing like a frozen chunk of meat clutching at An Ning"s hand as if it was a lifeline. They saw a tall young man, his ponytail clasped in fine gold atop his head, his robes magnificent on a tall and muscular body, and on his face, that beautiful face that could literally stop traffic on a busy Manhattan street in seconds.

"What a beautiful young man," Ceres exclaimed, earning the ire of An Ma whose eyes glinted when he looked at Nian Zhen.

"Yes, I would say he is the most beautiful man I"ve seen in a long while. Beautiful than even Enxuo was at this age," agreed Hippolyta, whose voice went down a little lower when she looked speculatively at Nian Zhen. That sudden change in timbre caught Li Cheung"s attention who strolled forward and grabbed his wife"s hand in his. The action seemed to amuse Hippolyta who threw her husband a fond look.

"Beautiful? Where?" Li Cheung asked belligerently, staring at Nian Zhen. "He looks ordinary to me."

"That"s because you"re a man, dad," Ceres said, laughing which turned into a scowl when An Ma pinched her arm.

"Beauty is as beauty does," An Ma said, giving his wife a threatening look. "Right, darling?"

"If you say so," Ceres said, pouting. An Ma gently lifted the arm he had just pinched and gave it a soft kiss, causing Ceres to laugh. The two of them ended up giggling like a couple of fools, much to the amus.e.m.e.nt of their daughter, An Ning. Hippolyta, however, was not.

"Honeymooners," she scoffed. "I abhor them."

"The last honey mooning couple you saw was three hundred years ago, darling, and that was when Enxuo married that witch," Li Cheung reminded her.

"That long?" Hippolyta frowned. "Oh well. And Merius is not a witch, darling."

"She might as well be, the way she treated poor Enxuo like that," Li Cheung said. "And he"s now missing, poor chap."

"He"ll be back," Hippolyta confidently said.

"Why do you say that?" Li Cheung frowned.

"Because he knows by now that I"m here and that I"m back. He"ll come looking for me then."

Li Cheung did not answer, just looking at his wife.

"What?"

"You and Enxuo always had this thing between you. As if it"s a secret thing and no one is allowed to know."

"What thing?"

"I don"t know how to describe it."

"Darling, Enxuo is my right-hand man. I brought him up after saving him from certain death. He has stayed by my side since he was twelve years old. I trust him. He trusts me. That kind of bond existed even before you and I got together. Enxuo thinks of me as his sister. And I think of him as a brother. We may not be blood-related but make no mistake, we are family," Hippolyta said seriously.

"Where do you think he went?" asked Li Cheung, backing off from his suspicion of Enxuo.

"I don"t know. All I know is that he loved his son and his mother...," Hippolyta stopped. "Merius is insane."

"Yu Yan"s magic..." Li Cheung trailed off.

"No, I don"t think that"s it. Merius always had this dark side to her that I tried to contain by not giving her too much power. When I left, that dam broke and there was n.o.body to restrain or keep her in line anymore. That kind of personality can become destructive if allowed to act on its own unrestricted. But even I didn"t expect that she would kill her own son."

There was silence. Everybody looked at Hippolyta, who was brooding and frowning at some unspoken thought. Li Cheung looked pointedly at An Ning, who nodded.

"Grandmama, you haven"t said hi to his majesty yet," she smilingly reminded Hippolyta.

"His name is Nian Zhen and he is the king of Chengdi. How are you, your majesty?" Hippolyta said, extending a hand to Nian Zhen. But before their hands could touch, Li Cheung grabbed his wife"s hand and enfolded it in his. Hippolyta looked at him in surprise.

"Do I need an explanation to hold my own wife"s hand?" his tone was belligerent, but his animosity was directed towards Nian Zhen who reddened.

"Grandpapa," An Ning scolded. "This introduction is already too long. Let"s move on and allow Nian Zhen to speak."

But Nian Zhen didn"t speak. He was suddenly filled with the inescapable fear of what might happen if Hippolyta and the rest of An Ning"s family find out about his true ident.i.ty. An Ma would skin him alive. He might even urge his daughter to leave Chengdi with the twins and never come back. And if Hippolyta and An Ning"s mother seconded that...Nian Zhen"s handsome face alternately paled and flushed. His audience looked at him, concerned.

"Your highness, Nian Zhen, are you alright?" An Ning said worriedly, looking at Nian Zhen like he was about to fall on the ground sick.

"He didn"t eat anything the whole day because he was worried about you."

Suddenly, from behind Nian Zhen, Gu Sheng spoke. He put a hand on Nian Zhen"s arm, more to prop him up than anything else. But Hippolyta and Li Cheung looked at that white hand on Nian Zhen"s cloth-covered arm and their sharp eyes seemed to focus. An Ning, who saw their expressions, smothered a laugh.

"I am Gu Sheng, you graces and I am a friend of An Ning"s," Gu Sheng bowed respectfully as he introduced himself.

"Actually, he"s my stepson but ya, we"re friends," An Ning said.

"Your stepson?" Ceres shrieked. "How could you have a stepson? And who"s his dad?"

"You married another guy? After divorcing that lousy husband of yours you got married again? Who is this new guy? Where is he?" An Ma was getting nuclear, looking at An Ning imperiously, demanding explanations.

"Did I forget to tell you that when I got into this world I took over the body of a dead empress who married an emperor who had recently died? Well, this is his son. Gu Sheng."

It was her audience"s turn to gape at her.

"This sounds like some kind of a new arc in a novel you would write when you"re bored," An Ma complained. "I get the transmigration thing since you"re obviously younger than the last time we saw each other and I can understand that going through a time tunnel can f.u.c.k up some things in your system but seriously, Ning Ning. Is this true? This young man is your stepson?"

"Yes, dad. My stepson, Gu Sheng," An Ning said, smiling. "And I couldn"t help it, dad. The empress was already married to his father when she died so he became my stepson."

"I don"t understand any of it," An Ma frowned. "You taking over a dead woman"s body and... this is all strange."

An Ning laughed.

"You"ll understand soon enough, dad. Come, Little Gu, let me introduce you to everyone. This handsome man here is my dad An Ma. That beautiful lady over there is my mom Ceres. My grandparents Hippolyta and Li Cheung. And these two imps are my children, Castor and Pollux. Cas and Lux for short. Hey, imps, say hi to Gu Sheng. His full name is actually, his majesty the emperor of Yuqui but for now let"s just call him Gu Sheng."

Castor and Pollux who had been busily taking videos of the herd of deer that came back and were now nosing at the yellow bus moved to the group when An Ning called.

Cas nodded with a friendly nod at Gu Sheng. Lux, who was watching the video in her phone camera, barely lifted her head but mumbled a greeting.

Gu Sheng looked down and saw a white brow as soft and clear as tofu. The young girl"s lashes were long, the arch of the lips soft and sweet. A strand of long blue black hair escaped from its ribbons and was now lying on the girl"s lightly-covered bosom. Her long neck and shoulders were bare and so were the white, soft arms holding that square thing that was blinking in her hands. As Gu Sheng gazed at her transfixed, Lux"s long lashes fluttered and her eyes flew upwards and suddenly met Gu Sheng"s. As if caught doing something lewd, Gu Sheng"s face turned a fiery red. Lux didn"t seem to notice for she smiled and showed him the phone in her hand.

But Gu Sheng, who was suddenly unnerved by her smile and the feel of her sudden closeness, retreated, blushing furiously, a few steps behind Nian Zhen. Pollux was indifferent. Having lost interest in him, her attention returned to the video, which she and her brother, who had sidled up next to her, were now watching. She didn"t even seem notice that Gu Sheng was still staring at her, his eyes restless as they gazed at Lux"s lips, which had parted in surprise laughter at something her brother said.

n.o.body noticed his strange reaction but An Ning. She stared at Gu Sheng, at his blushing face, as he gazed wide-eyed at her daughter, and at Lux, who was totally oblivious at the intense and fiery look the young emperor of Yuqui was giving her. An Ning gave a soft laugh and suddenly thought of Gu Fang and the expression on his face when they first met. That An Ning had been as oblivious as Lux. Gu Fang, who had been an experienced lover of a thousand and more women during his short yet turbulent young life, had been reduced to acting like a foolish b.u.mpkin in front of Li An Ning"s indifference. It took almost a year for them to get together but when they did, Gu Fang"s affections had been constant and true. It took death to realize how very much Li An Ning had loved him in return.

At least, they were together now. If her transmigration had proved anything to An Ning, it was that the soul seeks out its chosen companion in life as in death. Gu Fang may have died a violent death, but she had not seen a single sight of him since she arrived in this world. If it meant he and the woman he loved were at peace together, then she will believe it as fact. Believing otherwise would have been unthinkable.

"Why don"t we all go to the palace and have something to eat?" Nian Zhen asked, finally taking some control of the situation. "I would think all of you are hungry after the journey. We can talk later after we"ve eaten something. The palace has also prepared your accommodations."

"Yes, let"s do that," An Ning agreed. "But who"s cooking? Not Hank, I hope."

"No. I hired some people to help us."

"How is Ban Chao doing? I hope it"s not pneumonia."

"No, just your basic garden variety flu. She"ll be okay. Kang Jun is looking after her," Nian Zhen said. "Come on, let"s go everybody."

The palace seemed to be in some sort of celebration mode because all the lights were turned on. Even the ones in the courtyard leading to the imitation garden. Hank and Kari were waiting for them on the steps. It was clear they were waiting for Nian Zhen to arrive because their eyes immediately zeroed in on him when he came into view but then their eyes widened large as saucers when they saw the people walking behind him.

Hank gasped when he saw Hippolyta, his gaze seeking An Ning"s, who met his eyes and grinned, nodding in affirmation. Hank almost reeled. Kari looked at him curiously. He whispered something in her ear and her eyes widened, gaping at Hippolyta like she was some unusual creature she would very much like to put under her microscope.

The group went inside, followed by a stunned An Ning who looked around the suddenly unfamiliar room. She had been gone for only two days but Nian Zhen had obviously used that time to do some renovations in the palace. Everything had been scrubbed clean. Fresh flowers were now on vases placed on tables and on windows. The dining area they never once used since she arrived was laid out with a long table and chairs. The table even had a table cloth in embroidered gold. Bowls and saucers of the finest and most delicate porcelain were laid out elegantly on top.

"When the heck did he have the time to do this?" An Ning whispered to Kari, who was still staring at Hippolyta with something like worship on her face.

"Since the first day you left. He ordered me to hire servants especially a cook, have the palace scrubbed up and down and to ready this and the rooms upstairs. Thank G.o.d, we did. Imagine if we hadn"t. The shame of it, An Ning. The Creator here... Oh my G.o.d, I think I"m going to s.h.i.t my pants."

An Ning giggled.

"What are you two whispering about?" Hank had silently walked over to them, still excited, still awed at the presence of the person he had wanted to meet for a long time.

"I was telling Kari that we seemed to have come to the wrong palace," An Ning smiled, watching Nian Zhen make small talk with her parents and grandparents.

"Nian Zhen"s idea. It would have been humiliating if we hadn"t. With the Creator here...Oh my lord, I"m still trembling with excitement. I think I"m going to faint," Hank said, acting like a teen with his idol.

"Not here. My grandmother will throw you out like a sack of potatoes," An Ning snickered. "Just a simple warning, do not touch my grandmother. Do not invite her out on her own. Do not smile at her. Do not even attempt to flirt with her, if you value your life."

"Huh?" Hank was mystified.

"My grandfather is the most jealous of husbands. So, if you don"t want any of your digits or any other parts of your body you deem important cut off, do not p.i.s.s him off. He is not sane when it comes to his wife."

"You"re kidding, right?" Hank laughed.

But before An Ning could answer, An Ma again floored her with another bombsh.e.l.l question which was typical of his famous faux pas.

"Ning Ning, where"s that b.a.s.t.a.r.d Richard who did this to you? I have had enough of that idiot messing around with your life. Not only did he cheat on you he also has the nerve to pull you into his elaborate revenge fantasy. Where is he?"